photo
caption:QUITE A PREDICAMENT: On the
eve of Tess's wedding, Anna, in the body of Tess (Jamie Lee Curtis,
right) and Tess, in the body of Anna (Lindsay Lohan) must find
a way to switch back to their own bodies - and fast.end
caption.nd of caption

Mom and
Daughter Swap Bods One "Freaky Friday"

By
Kam Williams

I doubt if many people can recall Vice
Versa (1988), a light comedy in which a businessman and his
son find themselves inside each other's bodies after handling
a mysterious ornamental Oriental object. That all-but-forgotten
film is perhaps best remembered for featuring child star Fred
Savage (of TV's The Wonder Years) in the role which kickstarted
his career.

Almost no one would know that the original Vice
Versa was a silent, black and white flick from way back in
1916. And few, I'm sure, are aware of the 1948 version of the
same name directed by Peter Ustinov. There, a businessman ends
up as his own son (and vice-versa, of course) after rubbing a
magic stone from India while wishing to be young again.

So,
the parent-child body-swap has long been a popular plot device
that gets revived whenever idea-bereft Hollywood senses audiences
are ripe for a re-introduction to this improbable, if reliably
engaging, genre of comedy. I suppose there's something universal
about such a switch that captures the imagination of young and
old alike, with each generation relishing the idea of the other's
literally having to walk a mile in its mocassins. Or, as in the
case of Freaky Friday, the female equivalent of Vice
Versa, having to walk in its high heels, hairdos and other
fashion statements.

Freaky Friday is a Walt Disney
franchise based on the Mary Rodgers children's novel published
in 1972. Rodgers also wrote Summer Switch, a suspiciously
similar-sounding story about a father and son who miraculously
trade incarnations, and end up spending the summer in each other's
camp and office, respectively. That tale was made into a movie
by Nickelodeon in 1983.

Disney first adapted Freaky Friday
to the big screen in 1976 with the then thirteen year-old Jodie
Foster aboard as Annabel Andrews, the annoying teenager who, one
weird Friday the 13th, learns a big lesson in life from her Mom's
point-of-view. Although Jodie's performance failed to generate
much in the way of critical acclaim, she did receive the first
of her many Oscar nominations a few months later for her brilliant
work in Taxi Driver.

In 1995, a made-for-TV version
of Freaky Friday didn't register much more than a blip
in the ratings, enabling Disney now to redo the movie anew only
eight years later. This latest release is actually the best of
the bunch, being extraordinarily funny and fresh, despite the
well-worn thematic elements. Perhaps, it succeeds on account of
its leads, Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan, both of whom throw
themselves into their roles with an absolutely admirable gusto.

As
the movie opens, we see that Dr. Tess Coleman (Curtis) has her
hands full with her spoiled, 15 year-old daughter, Anna (Lohan).
They hate each other's tastes in clothes, coiffures, culture and
most importantly, men. The latter is a critical problem, with
Tess's impending marriage to Ryan (Mark Harmon) looming just a
couple of days away. It doesn't help matters that Anna's bratty
little brother, Harry (Ryan Malgarini), is also a distracting
monkey wrench in the mix, acting out with annoying antics like
sticking straws up his nostrils and exclaiming, "Look! I'm
a walrus!"

The tension escalates after Anna messes
up at school where she gets sent to detention twice and receives
an F in English. Mom reacts by pulling the plug on her daughter's
deafening garage band and by removing the door to her bedroom
entirely. "You're ruining my life!" Anna shrieks, but
to no avail.

Then, one Thursday night, while the two are
arguing in a Chinese restaurant, a meddling waitress serves them
identical fortune cookies, whose special message reads, "A
journey soon begins, the prize reflected in another's eyes. Laugh,
then selfless love will change you back." The next morning,
of course, each has a meltdown after they awake somehow transformed
into the other.

After hurling a few cross insults, the shock
of recognition sets in, and humorous situations ensue as Anna
proceeds to spend the day as a shrink while Dr. Coleman resigns
herself to returning to high school. Will the mess get sorted
out before the wedding. Or will the situation go kablooey? What
do you think? Keep in mind that this is a Disney production.